Emergency signals are used in two-way radio systems to provide an alert to a critical situation. In current two-way radio operation, whenever a radio communication device generates an emergency signal, the emergency signal can only be heard by other radio communication devices that are currently tuned to the same originating channel. In current two-way radio operation, there is no mechanism to propagate emergency signals across multiple channels while operating in talk-around mode, also referred to as direct (radio-to-radio) mode, which lacks the presence of a base repeater. Some systems use a base station or a centralized dispatch console with the ability to perform frequency “patching” that allows the emergency signal to be heard across different channels, but this is no longer considered radio-to-radio mode. Even in these base repeater scenarios, there is no mechanism to propagate emergency alerts amongst a group of radio communication devices using different channels, when the radio communication devices go “out-of-range” from the system.
Thus, there is a need to have a mechanism for radio communication devices operating in talk-around mode to efficiently propagate emergency signals across different channels.
Skilled artisans will appreciate that elements in the figures are illustrated for simplicity and clarity and have not necessarily been drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions of some of the elements in the figures may be exaggerated relative to other elements to help to improve understanding of embodiments of the present disclosure.
The apparatus and method components have been represented where appropriate by conventional symbols in the drawings, showing only those specific details that are pertinent to understanding the embodiments of the present disclosure so as not to obscure the disclosure with details that will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of the description herein.